familyfun2012 wrote:I can't afford any mechanical issues as this is the only auto I have and depend on it to work... Mitch what do you think about the 2740 lb Jayco?

familyfun - That 05 Tahoe I talked about in my origianl response now has over 160,000 miles on it. Still on the road with my DD as her personnel vehicle. She puts about 20k a year on it running to horse events and activities all over the southeast. That Tahoe still runs like new. If you have taken care of your truck, pulling the trailer you propose will do it no harm at all. Just make sure you do the routine maintenance. If it doesn't have an auxillary transmission cooler and engine oil cooler I would recommend you get them. You are going to be pushing that V6 capability.

But, a V6 with a 3.23 gear ratio is going to be really struggling to tow that thing IMO... I tow a #5000 GVWR TT with an F150 that has a 5.4 V8 with 3.55 gears and I know it's there! I'm in 3rd for the most part and the trucks comfort zone of around 2500 rpms to go around 60 mph down the hwy..

I once had to go into 30 mph head winds with the same rig and it was hard to maintain 50 mph without it wanting to go into 2nd gear all the time..

Anyway, to the OP.. You can probably get away with what you propose for a couple of trips.. But, I would guess that it won't be much fun and the mechanical issues that it'll create will not be much fun either...

Good luck with whatever you decide to do.

Mitch

I tow a 6000lb +, TT with a 04 150, 3.55, and 5.4. I have absolutly no problems. More power than I will ever need. the truck's happy place is inbetween 60, and 65. 2500 RPM. Right where the engine likes to run.

Oh boy we have a new Weight Police member
I will say your TV IMO is under powered. If your going a couple hundred miles on flat land, maybe. Popup tent trailers are a really neat option especially for a young family.
Good luck and have fun

NewsW wrote:Exceed the legal maximum weights in your rig, and should you get into an accident and an insurance or other investigator discovered that fact.

You are at a minimum, civilly liable for everything.

Go ahead and risk.

Dude you are getting to be ridiculeous and needlessly scaring the OP. The legal limits are axle wieght rating, tire wieght rating and registered vehicle wieght rating (i.e. how much you pay DMV to license your vehicle too, not related to GVWR or GCWR at all) GVWR and GCWR are not legal limits. If by chance some ambulance chasing lawyer does try that like NewsW is trying to scare you with just call any federal DOT inspector in to testify. That lawyer's arguement will go up in smoke because that is all it is, smoke. I seriously doubt any reputable insurance agency will even try that as they know better.

OP: You do need to meet the axle limits and tire limits. You will also need to be registered (licensed) for the total wieght of your TT and Truck fully loaded, it is going to cost you more than a standard 6,000# car/truck registration. Your probably looking at a 12,000# registration to be on the safe side.

familyfun2012 wrote:I can't afford any mechanical issues as this is the only auto I have and depend on it to work... Mitch what do you think about the 2740 lb Jayco?

Lighter is better, but not all that you'll be dealing with.. Wind resistance will still play a factor, so you'll still be working your V6, but keep it maintained and the fluids fresh and take it easy and don't be in any hurry and you should be fine...

That's what I do with mine and I've got a lot of miles on the old F150..

rick83864 wrote:Oh boy we have a new Weight Police member
I will say your TV IMO is under powered. If your going a couple hundred miles on flat land, maybe. Popup tent trailers are a really neat option especially for a young family.
Good luck and have fun

How big is the family wt wise. If you are all on the small size, maybe 4 people, a halfton as you have may do it with a 4-5K trailer. You will want to pack light to stay under the GVWR and RA capacities of the truck etc. No, you will not break any speed records. You can get there in one piece!

On the other hand, if you have 6 people, 4 kids that are adult sized teens, you will have your truck at gvwr before loading a trailer up, and as such, the truck will have NO trailer capacity, and NewW's recommendation of a SW 25/35 series truck would be appropriate. Which quite frankly, is what I used with my family fo 6 pulling a 6-7K trailer. Because payload wise, I was typically putting 2-2500 lbs in the truck. A typical 5 or 6 lug half ton does not have that capacity. Even then, I was sometimes upwards of 500 lbs over the manufacture GVWR of 9200 lbs< altho WELL under the axel capacities, and under my registered wt of 10K lbs. And for that matter, WELL over the GCWR of 12500 with said rig, but there was NEVER a time I felt out of control, white knuckled etc going down the road with my family at 15-16K lbs total. Same truck, different motor, axel etc, was good to 19500.

With this in mind, I would recommend an upgrade sooner than later to a 25 series truck with a 5.5-6L gas motor minimum for your trailer choices, in the mean time, do not go to the rockies! stay a day or two drive away from home, and enjoy things. Do not be surprised if your max speed is in the 40 mph range going up hills! If your not overheating, what the heck, drink some coffee, enjoy the view and time with the kids.